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Is this the reason some older people act like jerks? 🧓

A new study in Self & Identity found that older adults reflect less on their personality traits than younger adults do. That might explain why some older folks seem set in their ways, they’re not spending as much time questioning if they’re the problem.

Key findings:

• 🧓 Older adults reflect less on traits like emotional stability and extraversion, even after accounting for personality type.
  

• 🤔 People low in emotional stability or extraversion were more likely to compare themselves to others or their past selves.
  

• 🧘 Emotionally stable folks were less likely to spiral into repetitive, negative thinking.
  

• 🔍 Open-minded people did more thoughtful reflection overall—suggesting a link between curiosity and self-awareness.
  

• 👀 Extraverts reflected more through social comparisons, while anxious types focused on both the social and the personal.
  

Why it matters:
This might explain why your grandad doesn’t care if he came off as rude. It’s not that he’s mean, he’s just not reflecting on it. With age comes wisdom… or at least fewer mental rewinds.

Read the full study here 👈

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You are what you listen to 🎧

A new international study backs Neural Resonance Theory (NRT), the idea that we don’t simply process music—we physically resonate with it. Instead of relying on learned predictions, our brains and bodies naturally sync up with rhythm, melody, and harmony like a human tuning fork.

Key findings:

• 🧠 Music triggers real physical resonance in the brain and body, from the auditory system to the spinal cord.
  

• 🔁 We move to the beat because our internal oscillations naturally lock onto musical rhythm, timing, and harmony.
  

• 🌍 Pulse and harmony create shared patterns across listeners, regardless of musical training or culture.
  

• 💡 Therapeutic potential includes treatments for stroke, Parkinson’s, and depression, plus better AI-generated music and new ways to teach rhythm and pitch.
  

• 🧩 Music's emotional pull may come from how deeply it syncs with the way our brains are wired to form patterns.
  

Why it matters:
This changes how we think about music. It’s more than just noise, it’s something our brains and bodies live through. Whether you’re dancing, crying, or zoning out to a tune, there’s a real neurological symphony happening under the surface.

Read the fully study here 👈️ (closed access)

How early institutional care shapes the body and brain 🧒

A 16-year study from Romania has uncovered the deep and lasting impact of early institutional care on children’s development. Researchers followed children raised in institutions, some of whom were later placed in foster homes, tracking their growth and brain activity over time.

Key findings:

• 🧠 ADHD was far more common in children raised in institutions (27 percent) compared to those raised in families (4.5 percent).
  

• 📏 Physical growth was delayed. These children were generally shorter, weighed less, and had smaller head circumferences.
  

• 🍼 Timing mattered. Children placed into foster care before the age of two had significantly better outcomes than those placed later.
  

• ⚡ Brain development showed clear differences, especially in children who remained in institutional care longer.
  

• 📉 No trade-off was found. Faster physical growth did not come at the expense of brain development. In fact, better physical growth predicted more typical brain patterns.
  

Why it matters:
When early life is unpredictable or lacking care, the body and brain adapt in ways that can carry on for years. But with early support and stable environments, that trajectory can change, especially if help comes in the first couple of years.

Read the full study here 👈

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Dan from Cognitive Crumbs